The science of social media.

The complete guide to:

Contents
1.
1.1 1.2 1.3 1.3.1 1.3.2

Pinterest
What is Pinterest? Key statistics Why should you use Pinterest for your brand? Which areas work well Key objectives

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3.9 3.9.1 3.9.2 3.9.3 3.10 3.10.1 3.10.2 3.10.3 3.10.4

Search function Search pins Search boards Search people Boards Creating a board Categories Categorising, editing or deleting a board Gifts and pricing

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2.
2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4

Getting started
Creating the account Settings The Pinterest interface Profile page

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4.
4.1 4.2 4.3

Engagement
Following a user Following a board Like and comment

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3.
3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8

How to pin
Adding a pin Uploading a pin Pin etiquette Pin It bookmark button Repin Tagging What to pin When to pin

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5. 6.
6.1 6.2 6.3

Copyright issues Site implementation

Passive button Active button Pin blocking

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7. 8.

Glossary Notes

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1 Pinterest
1.1

What is Pinterest?
Pinterest is the new big thing in social media. Still in its beta phase, it boasts a reported 13million users and has seen its page views increase 230.9% in the last 3 months.
Currently ranked as the 31st most visited website in the UK, Pinterest is a collection of virtual pinboards allowing you to pin images you like onto boards in different categories. People can use it to plan their weddings, decorate their homes and organise recipes.

Pinterest boasts 13,000,000 users worldwide.

1.2

Key statistics
Pinterest has really taken off in the USA, with 12 million unique users compared to 200,000 in the UK. Whats really interesting is that whilse Pinterest is a female dominated platform in America (83% of users are female), in the UK the gender divide is a lot more even 56% of users are male. In the UK, 42% of users are aged 25-34, with the second largest age group being 35-44. The majority of UK users are university educated and about 60% of users earn over 63,900 a year.

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1 PINTEREST

1 PINTEREST

1.3

Why should you use Pinterest for your brand?

Pinterest has become one of the biggest social traffic referrals, bringing in more traffic than YouTube, Google+ and LinkedIn combined.

1.3.2

Key objectives
Since its rise in popularity earlier this year, Pinterest has become one of the biggest traffic referrals, bringing in more traffic than YouTube, Google+ and LinkedIn combined. Most images are pinned from a website and therefore have a link back to the page where it was originally pinned from. This means each of these pins acts like a button back to the website. The reason for this higher rate of referral traffic is due to the way people pin images. There are five main types of Pinners Buyer These are people who express themselves through pictures and images relevant to their lives. This sort of activity is comparable to self-identification with products and focus group insight. Near future buyers These people use Pinterest as a bookmarking website or an online wish list. They pin to remind themselves of things they want to do, buy or revisit. Influencers Comparable to online product recommendations and reviews, these influential users like to share and recommend things they think others will like. Long-term buyers This type of user will be exploring topics and doing their research. They probably know what they want i.e. a bookcase, but they dont know what type of bookcase. This activity is akin to window shopping, careful adoption and informed decision-making. Immediate buyer This kind of user is actively searching new things to do, buy, look at or read. Their activity is similar to product research and targeted online searches i.e. oak book case with 5 shelves rather than bookcase.

1.3.1

Which areas work well

Pinterest has 32 different categories that a board can fall into, although you can label the board whatever you want. Pins will be more searchable should the board be in a suitable category. Choose the most relevant category for the company. For example if you lease cars the ideal category would be Cars and Motorcycles. All categories can be diversified to allow for a broader range of boards, i.e. Formula One, american muscle cars, Audi, sports cars, convertibles etc.

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2 Getting started
Pinterest is currently in beta testing. In order to join the site, a user must be invited or join a waiting list. Fresh Egg is able to send invitations to the platform so feel free to request one. It is best to register with the same email address as the business Twitter account to enable sharing via Twitter.

2 GETTING STARTED

2.1

Creating the account

Step 1 After either requesting an invite from Fresh Egg or Pinterest directly (using the Twitter email address), click on the link in the Pinterest invite email. This will redirect to Pinterest.

Initially it will ask to sign up with Facebook. Currently Pinterest does not connect to Facebook Pages so proceed by clicking on Or sign up with Twitter.

Step 2 After authorising Pinterest on Twitter its time to create the account. Fill out the fields as necessary.

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2 GETTING STARTED

2 GETTING STARTED

2.2
Step 3 Pinterest will then ask for the accounts interests. This will help Pinterest suggest users to follow, so select any option that is related to your brand.

Settings
It is important to configure the account settings correctly. In the top right corner of the page the account avatar and name will be displayed with a drop down menu next to it. Click the Settings option in the drop down.

Step 4 Pinterest will then generate a list of users to follow and prompt board creation.

In the Settings you can: Edit the email address, email notifications, password, username and gender. Add/edit the About section, Location and Website as well as change the brand avatar. Define sharing and visibility settings. Delete the account. It is important to make sure the accounts visibility setting is set to OFF, so the account will be indexed in search engines.

Step 5 Create a range of diverse boards that will attract users. Create a board for each different type of image that could be posted.

There are various ways of pinning an image or video. Users can Add a Pin, Upload a Pin or install a bookmark bar Pin It button.

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2 GETTING STARTED

2 GETTING STARTED

2.3

The Pinterest interface

This page is similar to the Facebook News Feed. It shows all the pins and repins of the users the account follows, as well as detailing any activity i.e. when someone follows you or one of your boards in addition to Like, Repin and Comment activities.

2.4

Profile pages
The profile page displays all the account information, including website, Facebook and Twitter.

This page also allows users to view pins by category, look at video pins and see what pins are popular (determined by how many times it has been repinned or liked) as well as browse pins that have prices in the gift section.

It also displaysthe last three users repinned, follower/following information and all the users pin details such as boards, pins, likes and recent activity.

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3 How to pin

3 HOW TO PIN

3.1

Adding a pin
Adding a pin is when a user finds an image on a website that they would like to pin. The benefit of adding a pin in this way is that the URL associated with the image provides a link back, which encourages more traffic. This link is kept regardless of how many people repin the image, so anyone who sees the image can click on it to see where it originated from. For example: a user would like to pin a Persian recipe so that it is easy to find later on when they would like to make the dish. Step 1 While signed into Pinterest click on the Add + button located at the top right of the Pinterest interface.

Step 2 Select Add a Pin from the options in the window.

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3 HOW TO PIN

3 HOW TO PIN

3.2
Step 3 Insert the URL of the page containing the image then press Find Images.

Upload a pin
The difference between adding a pin and uploading a pin is that the image you are adding is being uploaded from your computer. For example a user would like to pin an image they have taken of some Lego to add to the Geek category. Step 1 Whilst signed in to Pinterest, click on the Add + button located at the top right of the Pinterest interface.

Step 4 Fill out the relevant details for the image.

Click through to get correct image.

Select relevant board to place the image onto. The dropdown also allows you to create a new board.

Share pin via Twitter and/or Facebook. Do not share every pin as this could be considered spam.

Step 2 Select Upload a Pin from the options in the window. Tag the image with descriptive words that will make the image searchable to others.

Once everything is filled out, click Pin It.

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3 HOW TO PIN

3 HOW TO PIN

3.3
Step 3 Click choose file and select the image you would like to upload.

Pin etiquette

Pinterest have a few guidelines to help keep the Pinterest community positive. They are:

Step 4 Fill out the relevant details for the image.

Be respectful Pinterest is a community of people. Individual tastes are personal, but please be respectful in your comments and conversations. Be authentic Pinterest is an expression of who you are. We think being authentic to who you are is more important than getting lots of followers. Being authentic will make Pinterest a better place long term. Credit your sources Pins are the most useful when they have links back to the original source. If you notice that a pin is not sourced correctly, leave a comment so the original pinner can update the source. Finding the original source is always preferable to a secondary source such as Image Search or a blog entry. Report objectionable content Pinterest do not allow nudity, hateful content, or content that encourages people to hurt themselves. If you find content that violates the Terms of Service or Acceptable Use Policy you can submit it for review by pushing the Report Content link. How to make Pinterest better Pinterest is just getting started, so there are going to be bumps here and there. Let them know what's working and what's not. Even though they don't always have time to respond to each and every email, they take your input seriously and have already altered their terms of service several times as a response.

Select relevant board to place the image onto. The dropdown also allows you to create a new board.

Share pin via Twitter and/or Facebook. Do not share every pin as this could be considered spam.

Once everything is filled out, click Pin It.

Tag the image with descriptive words that will make the image locatable to others.

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3 HOW TO PIN

3 HOW TO PIN

3.4

Pin It bookmark button

Another way to pin is to install the Pin It button to your browser bookmark bar so that you can pin with ease while browsing. Details on installing the Pin It button for your browser can be found here: http://pinterest.com/about/goodies.

3.7

What to pin
Fresh Egg suggest pinning a range of images and video content. The main thing to remember is that users are drawn to images they can relate to, want to buy or visit and those they perceive as being part of their lifestyle. Do not over self-promote.

3.5

Repin
A repin is similar to an RT on Twitter. It means that a user has reposted someone elses pin onto one of their pin boards. To repin an image, simply click the Repin button, choose the board that you would like to pin it to and edit the description.

As well as pinning products, pin interesting images from your blog and news sections that will represent the brand and/or industry. Fresh Egg also advise repinning other users images that relate to your brand or industry to encourage engagement with them.

3.8

When to pin
As with other social media platforms Pinterest is more active between 12am to 2pm and in the evenings. Pins are more likely to incur repins or likes during these periods.

3.9

Search function
The search bar is located on the top left of the user interface. The search function can be used in three different ways:

3.9.1

Search pins
This will find any pins or images that have been described or tagged with the search term.

3.9.2 3.9.3

Search boards
This will find any boards named using the search term.

Search people
This will find any people whose username contains the search term.

3.6

Tagging
Tagging an image is very important as it make the image more searchable. Using variations of a term that people might use will increase the likelihood that it will be brought up in a search result. For example if someone wanted to look for Formula One images they might type F1, Formula 1 or Formula One.

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3 HOW TO PIN

3 HOW TO PIN

3.10

Boards
Step 1 While signed in to Pinterest, click on the Add + button located at the top right of the Pinterest interface.

3.10.2 Categories
Pinterest has 32 categories to help organise images for other users to browse through and repin:

3.10.1 Creating a board

Pinterest Categories x 32
Architecture Art Cars & Motorcycles Design DIY & Crafts Education Film, Music & Books Fitness Food & Drink Gardening Geek Hair & Beauty History Holidays Home Decor Humor Kids My Life Womens Apparel Mens Apparel Outdoor People Pets Photography Print & Posters Products Science & Nature Sports Technology Travel & Places Wedding & Events Other

Step 2 Select Create a Board from the options in the window.

Step 3 Name your board (i.e. Recipes to Try) and then choose a Board Category (i.e. Food and Drink). There is also an option to choose who else can pin onto this board. Once youre finished select Create Board.

Each user can have any amount of boards within each category, for example if someone was redecorating their home they could have several boards in the Home Decor category i.e. bathroom, kids bedroom, my bedroom and kitchen.

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3 HOW TO PIN

3.10.3 Categorising, editing or deleting a board

To edit a board, including category, click on the board that you would like to edit and select the Edit Board button. The edit page allows you to: Edit the title Edit or add a description of the board Decide who can contribute to the board Select or edit the board category Delete the board Once the board has been amended click the save settings button.

4 Engagement
4.1 Following a user
Fresh Egg recommends following back any user that follows you or that has pins or boards related to the brand or industry; this means that they are likely to pin more images in that category. Not only does this increase the likelihood of getting repinned, but also it provides the opportunity to repin related images. To follow a user click on one of their pins and click the Follow button. To look at the users pins or boards before following them click on the username to view their profile and select Follow All.

4.2 Following a board

3.10.4 Gifts and pricing
As well as organising pins into categories, Pinterest also has a Gift section which allows users to browse pins that have been priced. Some users may have a mass of boards and pin a lot of images in categories unrelated to your brand. Pinterest allows users to follow individual boards. To select individual boards to follow, go to the users profile and select Follow on the appropriate boards.

4.3 Like and comment

As with Facebook, there is a Like button on individual pins. This allows users to Like images without having to repin them. All Like activity is tracked on the profile page so it is possible to browse through all liked pins. There is also the option to comment on pins. This is a great opportunity to engage with industry-related users. It is important to respond to any comments in a friendly tone; this will encourage other users to join the conversation. Comments can be anything from a query about the image, to a review of the image content (Ive tried this recipe it was delicious or I love the smell of this perfume!). Likes, comments and repins are all factors that dictate if an image is deemed popular enough to appear on the Popular page.

To have a pin in the gift section the price of the Item must be entered on the description box, this will then be added to the pin.

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5 Legal issues
In recent months there has been a lot of talk about how legal Pinterest is and how its users could be held responsible for copyright.
Pinterest has recently updated its Terms of service. Originally Pinterests Terms of Service stated that by posting content to Pinterest, users granted Pinterest the right to sell thier content. This has now been changed. However, copyright is still an issue on Pinterest, and users who frequently infringe the copy or intellectual property rights of others will have their accounts terminated. Although a lot of people have been asking about the legality of Pinterest and pinning images, in essence it is no different from sharing an image or link on Facebook or Twitter. In accordance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 (DMCA), Pinterest will respond promptly to claims of copyright infringement committed using its site. These are reported to Pinterests designated copyright agent. Pinterests detailed copyright and trademark policies can be found at: https://pinterest.com/about/

6 Site implementation
As with in any social media website, Fresh Egg recommend adding both passive and active Pinterest buttons to your website. All Pinterest button codes can be found here: http://pinterest.com/about/goodies/

6.1

Passive button
A passive button is one that guides users to your various social media properties. Pinterest gives the choice of four different buttons and provides the HTML for each.

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6 SITE IMPLEMENTATION

6.2

Active button
An active button has an action associated with it i.e. Like, Tweet and +1. The Pinterest action is Pin it, which encourages users to pin an image to one of their boards. Pinterest has three variations of the button: No count - does not disclose how many times the image has already been pinned Vertical - in count displayed to the right of the button Horizontal - in count displayed above the button The button can be generated using the Pinterest code generator. The advanced option is designed for when there is more than one image that can be pinned on a page such as. in a gallery.

6.3

Pin blocking
If you would prefer that the images on your website were not pinned for any reason then Pinterest has a small piece of code that can be inserted into the header of the applicable page.

<meta name=pinterest content=nopin/>

If a user tries to pin an image from a site with this code, they will receive the message: This site doesnt allow pinning to Pinterest. Please contact the owner with any questions. Thanks for visiting.

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7 Glossary
Backlink - A link from an external website to your own Content ratio - How much code is around the content the less code, the better Description Tags - Website code that explains to specific page descriptions a search engine HTML - Hypertext Mark-Up Language

7 GLOSSARY

#FF - Follow Friday; a a special hash tag used to promote users you enjoy following to your followers so they might then follow them too Social media - Designed to be disseminated through social interaction, created using highly accessible and scalable publishing techniques. Social media uses internet and web-based technologies to transform broadcast media monologues (one to many) into social media dialogues (many to many) 140 Characters - The limit for posting a message on Twitter

IP address - The technical address of a computer Keyterm - A target word we are looking to rank for in a search engine Search terms - A target phrase of text we are looking to rank for in a search engine Longtail - A search term that consists of four or more words Page Rank (PR) - A score out of 10 that Google awards to individual website pages SEO - Search Engine Optimisation SERPS Search Engine Results Page Title tag - Website code that explains specific page title information displayed in search results to a search engine URI Uniform Resource Indicator URL - The technical term for a website address Tweets - Messages posted on Twitter, usually public DMs - Direct Messages, private messages posted between users who follow each other on Twitter RT - Retweet; a message reposted in exactly the same format, originally posted by someone else Follow - The term associated with adding a user to your News Feed on Twitter Hash tags (#) - Groups where similar posts can be tagged within Tweets, keeping them all together and making it easy to find topics that relate to the hash tag Trending topics - Topics that are popular and being spoken about frequently on Twitter. These dont have to be hash tags, but can be words or peoples names Pin - An image or video added to Pinterest. The action of creating pins is known as pinning Pinboard/board - A collection of topic based pins that the user creates and adds pins too Repin - Reposting another users pin to your own board Fail Whale - The page displayed when Twitter is over capacity features a whale being held up by small birds and has become known as the Fail Whale @ - The @ sign is used to talk to other users or mention them in messages on Twitter OAuth - A method to allow a user to grant third party access to their account without sharing the password

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8 Notes

Notes

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Notes

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